Will the next London Plan rise to the city’s real challenges?
This article was first published in Housing Today.
Ben Derbyshire reflects on Sadiq Khan’s latest policies to boost housebuilding in the capital.
You could be forgiven for thinking, following Sadiq Khan’s volte face on building in the green belt, that Londoners would be all over this issue like a rash. Far from it, if the mood among members of the London Society and the London Forum of Amenity and Civic Societies at a meeting convened on 13 May is anything to go by.
The [more…]
Chief Planner’s update
The MHCLG Chief Planner, Johanna Averley (pictured), has issued a newsletter to local authority planners. It covers a Modernised Planning Committees consultation and speeding up build-out with Completion Notices, a Delayed Homes Penalty and Compulsory Purchase Orders, as in a recent Working Paper and Technical Consultation.
The Government proposed Planning and Infrastructure Bill amendments to remove the statutory requirement to consult in the pre-application stage for NSIP applications.
DEFRA is consulting on options for how Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) should be applied and MHCLG issued a related Working [more…]
Simplifying decisions
As London Forum reported, the Planning & Infrastructure Bill includes delegating planning decisions. The Government has issued a 15 question Working Paper consultation for
- Simplifying decisions for schemes below 10 homes to help small and medium builders (SMEs)
- Introducing a medium-sized site threshold up to 49 homes
There is another working paper on ‘Speeding up Build-out’ and for major developments, the Government is considering options for a mixed tenure development threshold at 500 units. Views on the right threshold are sought in this ‘Simplifying Decisions’ Working Paper. There will be [more…]
Build Out consultation
The Government issued a Planning Working Paper on ‘Building Homes Faster’, as reported on 25th May 2025. That has been followed by a Technical Consultation, open until 7th July, for the introduction of a new statutory build out framework and the power to decline to determine applications.
Building homes faster
The Deputy Prime Minister has urged developers to “Get on and build” as here.
The Government wants views on a Planning Reform Working Paper ‘Speeding Up Build Out’, with eleven questions.
Councils will get new powers to keep housebuilders on track with build rates set before planning permission is granted. Developers who repeatedly fail to construct approved schemes or trade land speculatively could face a new ‘Delayed Homes Penalty’, be locked out of future permissions or have their sites acquired by councils. Annual reports on progress will [more…]
The New London Plan: Shaping Housing for the Future
On 13th May, the London Forum and the London Society held a joint collaborative event at UCL, that brought together leading voices in planning and development in the run up to the new London Plan due in 2026/7, focusing on the city’s most pressing issues: housing, transport, green space and sustainable growth.
The event was chaired by our President, Ben Derbyshire, with introductions by Michael Jubb, chair of the London Forum; Leanne Tritton, chair of TLS; and Jess Ferm, director of education at UCL/Bartlett. Keynote speakers were Jules Pipe [more…]
Tall buildings
The London Assembly Planning and Regeneration Committee published a tall buildings report – Do Tall Buildings Work in London? It states that tall buildings are not always delivering for residents at different stages of their lives. The Committee also heard evidence that flats in new tall buildings are often too expensive for those who need housing the most.
Recommendations in the report include the following:
- The GLA should conduct a housing typology assessment to understand what mixture of housing typologies London needs as part of [more…]
Towards a new London Plan
The Mayor launched a consultation ‘Towards a new London Plan’, running to 22nd June 2025 as here. It will be explained by the Deputy Mayor, Jules Pipe, at London Forum’s event on 13th May. The GLA offers supporting videos on the key topics and online events are offered which can be booked here. A Call for Evidence facility can be used to make additional detailed input to the GLA. It was part of the ‘Planning for London Programme’ in 2023, the results of [more…]
100 years to clear family social housing waiting lists
New data of the National Housing Federation, Crisis and Shelter found that acute shortages of social housing suitable for families mean it would now take more than 100 years to clear waiting lists in some places, with London 15th of the top 20 most affected UK areas. Boroughs spend £4m a day providing temporary housing. See more here.
Children in temporary accommodation
The report by the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee on this subject shows over 164,000 homeless children are currently living in temporary accommodation across England. Some families are in such accommodation for years without a settled home offer, due to the chronic shortage of social and affordable housing. London boroughs spend a combined total of £4 million per day on temporary accommodation.
London Councils, representing London’s boroughs, has commented on that as here.
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Planning Fees consultation response
The Queen Elizabeth II Garden
From Small Beginnings – The London Forum of Amenity and Civic Societies
The first initiative to bring London-based amenity societies together as a federation was the brainchild of two prominent and environmentally-committed members of the Blackheath Society, Neil Rhind and Tony [more…]
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